


Brotherhood or Sisterhood, It's the Same in the End

by themysteriousinternetentity



Category: One Piece
Genre: Gen, Like so much swearing you've been warned, Self-Insert, Swearing, Wano Arc (One Piece) Spoilers, but it's literally just the last line so if you skim that you're good
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-26
Updated: 2020-10-26
Packaged: 2021-03-09 07:47:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 8,147
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27200041
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/themysteriousinternetentity/pseuds/themysteriousinternetentity
Summary: "I'm me, I'm alive, I'm here. My language is real, my home was real, I'm not crazy."Finally, when she was almost at the end of her rope, she met him. A little boy in a hat far too fancy for the rubbish around them, who came up nervously looking for food from her, heard her muttering, and said "Oh wait, you speak West Blue?"
Relationships: Monkey D. Luffy & Portgas D. Ace & Sabo, Monkey D. Luffy & Self-Insert, Portgas D. Ace & Self-Insert, Sabo & Self-Insert
Comments: 11
Kudos: 150





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or any of the characters or worldbuilding therein, and make no claims of such. I did this for fun and to show my love for the story. I make no money off of this and do not want to. This work is not approved by, sponsored by or affiliated with the creators of the manga or the show, or any of the translators or official people with rights to said media.

When she woke up, the first thing she noticed was the terrible sensation of crawling, all over her skin. She jolted up and started frantically shaking her arms, brushing off the flies that had landed _on her._ That was it, that was the limit, she was getting fly paper when she went on her next grocery run because this was unacceptable-

The second thing she noticed was the smell. Her room was a bit messy, sure, but the stench of rot surrounding her was near unbearable and absolutely _not_ what her room had been like when she went to bed.

As she fought back the urge to vomit, she had her third realization: this wasn't her bedroom. She was in some kind of...landfill? The sun was beating down above her head, the flies just _kept buzzing at her,_ and all she could see around her were piles of scrap metal, broken furniture, and literal rotting garbage.

Her mind raced, trying to figure out what had happened. The last thing she remembered was going to sleep at home. Had she been kidnapped? Left for dead here in an attempt to hide her body? She started to pat down her torso, checking for any injuries she might have missed, and that was when she came to her final realization.

Her body was _wrong._ Her fingers were chubby, her (frankly very nice) boobs were completely gone, and her hair was shorter than it had been since she was a toddler.

Holy shit she was a toddler. Was it time travel? She didn't _remember_ spending time in a landfill as a child.

She stood up with a huff. Maybe she'd be able to find someone who could explain what was going on, or at least guide her out of this dump. An adult would be nice, if she was young enough to be cute and vulnerable then she'd gladly take advantage of the chance to avoid being responsible for shit.

As she walked through the mountains of garbage, she mulled over possibilities. She could have died and ended up in hell, but she was pretty sure she'd like. Know? Then again she did hate the unknown so that could be a punishment thing or something. Then again, the place was sending off some Magnus Archives vibes in a really bad way. She hoped beyond belief she hadn't ended up in some fictional cross-dimensional bullshit just to get dumped in the post-apocalyptic embodiment of capitalism, climate change, and rot.

Eventually, she came across people. Two adults, a man and a woman, in tattered clothing rummaging through one of the piles. "Excuse me?" Oh good heavens her voice was squeaky behind belief. She knew her voice had gotten deeper as she got older but this was ridiculous. "Excuse me, where am I? I want my Mommy." Was it dignified? Hell no. But she needed to play the sympathy card, not the "that's a creepily intelligent child" card.

Also, she actually really wanted her mom. Her mom was a paragon among humans, and would provide a really good hug right now, as well as some proof that the world wasn't completely insane. Her toddler brain may have been playing fast and loose with her emotions given how strongly she wanted to cry, but like. Those were valid emotions given the circumstances and she stood by them.

She wanted to cry even more when the woman said something to her and she didn't understand a word coming out of her mouth. She actually started crying when the man snapped at her in the same language she'd never heard, and clearly gestured for her to fuck off. Where the hell was she?

* * *

She had spent 3 days in this hellhole, and she still had no idea what was going on, because she couldn't communicate with _anyone._ She didn't think she was likely to learn the language anytime soon either, given that everyone she met either ignored her or responded with violence if she didn't back off quickly enough. She'd ended up deciding to tail some of the nicer adults from a distance, watching the people they knew to avoid and the places they considered safe to rest, and it was working out somewhat.

She was _so thirsty._ She'd resorted to picking through the actual trash for food, but most of the water sources she found were more mud than water. She had no way to make a fire, and she was terrified that she would catch dysentery or something. She was quickly learning that if she didn't look after herself here, nobody else would.

The trash had to end, right? Surely there was an edge, either nature or just a blessed rescue from the waste of humanity. She'd honestly take a parking lot at this point and be damned grateful for it.

So she picked a direction, and she walked.

Climbing over a couch, she missed her adult legs _so badly._ She wasn't the tallest person before, but at least she wasn't under two feet.

When she reached the edge, she saw the most beautiful thing in her life: a _river._ She wanted to guzzle as much water as her tiny stomach could hold, but she remembered the multiple times she'd been dehydrated and kept herself to slow, steady sips.

She'd been there for some time when she heard a growl from the other side of the river. Looking up slowly, she locked eyes with a tiger. A fucking _tiger_ what the actual fuck.

"Nice kitty..." she held her hands up reassuringly, backing up slowly towards the trash heap. "Good kitty, drink your water and don't even both with me, I'm like two bites max, absolutely a waste of your time."

As soon as she made it out of the tiger's sight, she booked it back into the dump. Stumbling over cans as she went, she muttered "hell world hell world hell world!"

That did explain why people lived here instead of that nice green forest, at least?

* * *

She didn't know how long she'd survived in the trash heap. (Survived, not lived, she wouldn't call it living). She had grown a bit, but given the state of her nutrition probably not as much as she should have.

She tried to cling to who she was. She spoke to herself, sang under her breath and recited poems and narrated her day, anything to remind her that her voice existed, her language was real, her _home_ had been real.

She did her best to keep her humanity. Smaller kids would come to the old broken fridge that she called her shelter, and if she had food she would share it.

(Bigger kids would come too, and grown adults, and if she had food they'd _take_ it). She learned the faces of the men she should avoid, and more than anything she learned to _hate._

There was a city right _there,_ and they wouldn't let them in. Wouldn't share anything more than their fucking garbage, while children grew up scavenging and stealing, flinching from the blows that always came, right on their fucking doorstep.

It scared her sometimes, how much she hated them, the people she'd never talked too. So she shared with the other children, and told herself that meant she was still her. That she wasn't changing to fit in with the people around her.

That she wouldn't wake up one day and hold a knife to a toddler's throat over a moldy chunk of bread.

"I'm me, I'm alive, I'm here. My language is real, my home was real, I'm not crazy."

Finally, when she was almost at the end of her rope, she met him.

A little boy in a hat far too fancy for the rubbish around them, who came up nervously looking for food from her, heard her muttering, and said "Oh wait, you speak West Blue?"


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or any of the characters or worldbuilding therein, and make no claims of such. I did this for fun and to show my love for the story. I make no money off of this and do not want to. This work is not approved by, sponsored by or affiliated with the creators of the manga or the show, or any of the translators or official people with rights to said media.

She doesn't-

She doesn't remember her _name._

Sabo looks at her and guesses she's around 7, and tells her he's 5 (and she takes a moment to hate again, this fucked up world that drives a child into a hell like this at an age when he should be eating goldfish and coloring).

She thinks she was about 4 when she arrived, although she doesn't know that much about children so it's a rough guess at best. But she's been here for 3 fucking years, and hasn't had a proper conversation in just as long, and she _can't remember her name._

Sabo sees her building panic, and he's still soft and sweet in a way she knows won't last if he survives out here, and he says he can give her a name if it makes her feel better?

Mira. It's as good as anything else. It doesn't feel quite right yet, but neither does anything else. He tells her it's a name from West Blue, which is where she's from, and it doesn't sound quite right but she doesn't know where _here_ is so maybe that's what they call it? America was referred to as the West often enough. He tells her the name of the town she hates (Goa Kingdom) and the island they're on (apparently it's an island, called Dawn) and it's vaguely familiar, like his name, but.

But she's been here for three years.

She forgot the stories she had once read a long time ago, focused on remembering the faces of her little brothers when she wasn't devoting all of her attention to avoiding the Bad Men (who Sabo has informed her are pirates).

She's absolutely desperate to keep him with her, in a way she hasn't been since she fell into her rhythm of survival. If this little boy dies she will have _nothing_ tying her to the world around her.

He's suspicious though. It's good, it's likely to keep him alive. They agree on a deal: he will teach her the language (Eastern, apparently) and she will teach him where to get food and the best places to hide from the pirates.

She isn't _alone._ She doesn't cry that night, because it would be a waste of precious water and a sign of weakness, but she lays down with the knowledge that someone is keeping watch, and she smiles.

She hasn't smiled in so long.

* * *

Mira is 9 and Sabo is 7 when he introduces her to Ace for the first time.

They don't stick together every hour of the day, splitting up to scavenge and hide valuables, and apparently Sabo has been making a friend when they're separated.

A violent friend, to be fair, but violent means _strong,_ violent means _take what you want_ and now violent is on their side for the first time. And violent looks at her and says "I can teach you to fight, Sabo likes you and that means you're okay."

She probably should be distressed at the news that Sabo has been mugging people for the past few months, but Sabo has also been getting his hands on _food_ and her priorities are in perfect order.

(They've been mugging city people anyway, and who gives a shit about them?)

And so two becomes three, and Ace slips into their dynamic as smoothly as if he'd always been there. She doesn't know why she trusts him so quickly, but something in her screams that this boy is _important._

And he's _strong,_ and soon enough she is too. Strong people can protect. Strong people get to _live._ Mira looks at the two little boys (and if she said it out loud they'd be incredibly offended, because 2 years isn't that big really), and she feels like something is missing.

These aren't her brothers though. Her brothers are safe, far far away at home. Just because she had three brothers once-upon-a-time, it doesn't mean there's another one waiting. This isn't a fucking story, this is real life. And in real life, she's swinging a pipe at a 7-year-old's head in a desperate attempt to keep him from putting her in a headlock again.

Life is....good. Life is actually good.

* * *

They're all sitting in the branches of their tree, when Sabo brings it up. "What do you want to do when you're older, Mira?"

She doesn't understand the question at first. "The same...thing? I dunno, stay alive, maybe protect some kids when I'm strong enough." She'd always wanted children, and like _fuck_ is she bringing another life into this mess, but that doesn't mean she can't claim the ones who are already here.

"Don't you want to leave?" Ace asks her, swinging around so that he's dangling by just his knees, swaying back and forth ten feet above the ground.

"Hadn't really thought about it, I guess. I did only just learn how to talk to anyone, I didn't even know we were on a fucking island."

"Where else would we be?" Sabo's tone implies that he thinks she's a complete idiot, and she leans over and shoves him out of the tree. "HEY!"

She waits until he climbs back up to his position before continuing. "The only thing I really know how to do is fight, so I dunno who'd give me a job to leave with." She vaguely remembers job hunts as being incredibly stressful, and the Gray Terminal is a shithole but she doesn't pay rent and the jungle is full of food.

(Even if she didn't love Ace for being himself, she'd always be in his debt for the fact that she hasn't eaten garbage in the past three months).

"The guards might want fighters, but they're bastards and I'm not gonna work for _city people._ "

(Sabo absolutely had his priorities in order when he taught her Eastern- her profanity options were as varied as her names for vegetables were limited).

"You should be a pirate, duh."

"Ew, I'm not gonna work for Bluejam."

Sabo sighs exaggeratedly and falls into what she has labeled his "explaining basic facts of life" voice. He doesn't deserve that voice given which member of their trio had explained the actual facts of life last month, but whatever. "There's other pirates Mira. Ace and I are gonna be pirates, that's why we've been saving up."

Ace nodded firmly. "We're gonna buy a boat and sail away and never come back to this shitty place."

There was a time, Before, when she would have hesitated. When she would have dithered about the morals of piracy, theft and killing and breaking the law. Here? Here she smiles at them, crooked and missing two teeth, and asks them "Got room for one more?"


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or any of the characters or worldbuilding therein, and make no claims of such. I did this for fun and to show my love for the story. I make no money off of this and do not want to. This work is not approved by, sponsored by or affiliated with the creators of the manga or the show, or any of the translators or official people with rights to said media.

"He knows where our treasure is, what should we do?" Mira eyes the kid tied to the tree trunk, and frowns. Ace has been complaining about his stalker for weeks, and it's nice to finally have a face to match with the whining.

"We should kill him." The kid freaks out immediately, and Mira smacks both of her boys.

"I give you _one_ rule, and it's don't mess with younger kids."

Ace folds his arms and mutters angrily "We're kids too, why do you _care_ so much?" Mira knows full well that answering that will spark yet another long and circular debate about what counts as a good childhood, human rights, and the difference between bullying and mugging. She hasn't managed to sway either of them yet, impeded by the fact that her real reason is that she's an _adult_ and they _aren't._

"Doesn't matter, I do care. Find another way."

The situation devolves quickly when of all people, _Porchemy_ shows up. Mira tries to protect kids, sure, but she values her boys lives and her own first. That probably makes her a shitty person, but she was resigned to that a long time ago. They know which fights they can't handle, and so they all hide, and do nothing as he walks off with the stalker kid.

He's dead meat.

Obviously he's dead meat.

There's no point in the rest of them dying too. Better to ensure his sacrifice isn't for nothing.

There's...a lot she's willing to do, to get out of this place. She's not proud of it, but it's true.

 _But the kid doesn't crack._ They move all the treasure and there's _no sign_ of pirates, and Mira may be a selfish terrible person but dammit she pays back her debts. They save the stalker, and Mira gets another kid to look out for. His ability to stretch is nightmare inducingly wrong, but he's... He's so _bright._ Mira thought life was good before, with her boys and the hope of a future far away from here, but Luffy is unjaded in a way she hasn't seen in so _long._

(She points to him, and finally wins her argument about what kids are supposed to be like).

* * *

Moving in with the bandits had been great! Mira literally hadn't slept under a roof in the last seven years, she was living the high life.

Now though, she's wondering if it was worth it. "FIST OF LOVE!" oh god no, absolutely not no thank you. Forget anything she ever said about the lack of adult involvement in all of their lives, she did not ask for a grandfather and does not need one.

He is hugging her now. What the fuck. Nobody has hugged her in this body besides Luffy, and he is allowed by virtue of being baby. Where the _fuck_ are Ace and Sabo?

Ohhhh those bastards used her as a distraction, didn't they? Above her head, Garp is crying about "finally getting a granddaughter" which is uh. Sure something. When she gets her hands on those boys they will _pay_ for this.

_T_ _here will be blood._

* * *

Mira has forgotten so much about her home, but there are some things she refuses to let herself lose. Her extended family and friends have slipped from her mind, lost to time (and possibly the various head injuries, to be fair). But she clung with desperate focus to five people.

Her parents, she doesn't think about so much these days. She won't forget them, but she thinks they'd be disappointed in her, and that _hurts._ They wouldn't blame her for surviving, not ever, but the fact that she plans to keep stealing after she doesn't need to? That wouldn't sit well with them. (And then there's the Luffy Meeting, but she's disappointed in herself for that one, enough for all three of them).

Her little brothers...she thinks about _them_ more and more every day. Luffy is wide-eyed and affectionate, seeking cuddles in a way that can't do anything but remind her of the youngest, who felt no shame in snuggling well into teenagerhood. Sabo is so _smart,_ pointing out connections she would have never considered and rambling about things she doesn't even begin to understand even with her headstart, and her mind without fail flashes back to the brother who would infodump without pause about the things he loved. And Ace's entire personality, his grumpy tolerance of affection from Luffy, his every interaction with the rest of them is far too similar to the oldest of her brothers from before.

She isn't replacing them, she tells herself firmly. They'd want her to be _happy,_ and she sees her boys as their own people anyway. The numbers are just a coincidence, the similarities her mind projecting half remembered details onto the closest people in her life.

"Did you know if you exchange cups of sake, you can become siblings?" Mira stares at him, for a long moment, and then she books it.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or any of the characters or worldbuilding therein, and make no claims of such. I did this for fun and to show my love for the story. I make no money off of this and do not want to. This work is not approved by, sponsored by or affiliated with the creators of the manga or the show, or any of the translators or official people with rights to said media.

She doesn't go back.

Not to the bandits, and not to the Terminal. If she stays in the jungle, they're less likely to find her. She can hunt for herself now, look after herself. It's fine. The boys have each other, so she's not abandoning them. They can be brothers, it'll be good for them. She'll just be their half-remembered friend.

She doesn't think about how much she wants a hug now that Luffy's gotten her to expect them.

She doesn't think about the fact that she can't be Ace-or-Sabo's first mate and leave Dawn if she stays alone.

She _definitely_ doesn't think about the look of shattered despair on Ace's face when she ran.

The boys can look after themselves. She's _been_ a big sister, they don't really want that. She nags about safety and good decisions, and teases about romance, and bosses her brothers around. That's the last thing they need.

She resolutely ignores the fact that she'd been doing all those things anyway, for years now, and they hadn't shoved her away yet. She'll be a jungle hermit and then she'll die at the ripe old age of 99. It's the perfect plan.

Then she finds the fruit. Weird and swirly, like nothing she's ever seen before. It smells absolutely awful, but she's aware that she needs to eat more than meat to stay healthy, and it's less likely to poison her than a mystery berry, right? She forces down a bite of the absolutely revolting thing, and is about to rush to the river to swish out her mouth when

She

Remembers

_Everything._

Everything she's ever thought, done, read, felt rushes through her head and _stays_ there. As a headache starts to build, she focuses on the most important things she now knows.

First of all, years of therapy telling her that she's been an absolute dumbass and needs to go hug her _little brothers._

Second, she's in a manga, Ace is a mountain of self hate that she's just made worse, and if she doesn't do anything he will die and Sabo will forget them.

Third? She's just eaten the Think-Think fruit, and it's fucking with her brain. Not cool, she manages to think, before a wave of memories overcomes her and she passed out where she stands.

* * *

Mira...Gwen? Her _name_ is back, but she doesn't have time to have any sort of identity crisis because when she wakes up it's to the sight of Ace, Sabo, and Luffy staring down a tiger, their backs to her prone form.

They _found her._ They came back for her. She stumbles to her feet, grabbing her pipe. "Hey," she manages, her voice thick with emotion. "So I'm a dumbass."

"No _shit,_ " Sabo mutters. "Tiger first, talk after."

"Fair enough." With all four of them, they make short work of it. As soon as it falls, Luffy tackles her in a hug, sobbing into the front of her shirt.

"I thought we were never going to see you agaaaaain!"

Ace's arms are crossed, and he leans against a tree and stares at the ground as he says "It was a dumb idea, ok? You didn't have to run away about it."

Oh she fucked up but good, didn't she? "That wasn't- I want to be your sister. I do. I'm just...I panicked."

Sabo frowns at her. "Why?" And oh, that's the question of the day isn't it? She hasn't told them anything about her home. Sabo hadn't asked, assuming that she didn't remember, and the others likely hadn't considered her past further than the obvious accent and the language issues that still popped up from time to time.

She chews her lip nervously, but they deserve to know the truth after what she's put them through. "I used to have brothers. Before the Terminal. I...I was worried that I would be replacing them or something."

"That's _dumb,_ " Sabo scowls, and

"I _know that_ moron, emotions don't make sense!"

"But you still want to be our sister?" Luffy looks up at her from the hug he still hasn't ended, and she doesn't let herself think about _canon_ and _fate_ and a pirate captain who will stand up to the most powerful people in the world with a smile, just opens her arms and stares meaningfully at Ace and Sabo.

"Absolutely, if you'll still have me." Mira-Gwen-whoever she is clings to her boys desperately, and swears to herself that she will never, ever let go of this. She will keep them all safe if she has to throw herself between Ace and that magma fist to do it.

* * *

They'd shared sake, and laughed and celebrated, and were all in the backroom in a cuddle pile when Mira finally has a chance to process the _other_ thing that happened today.

_The Think-Think fruit._ That's...just about the bottom of her list of powers she'd be okay with, actually. She can't bring herself to regret it because she needed it, now she has a chance to save her brothers, but if this ends up with some kind of mind-reading she will grump about it forever.

She remembers everything, and it's...not great. She's pretty sure the animations of Ace collapsing to the ground, Sabo exploding, and Luffy's heart breaking will haunt her dreams in vivid detail for the rest of her life. That would be bad enough, but she remembers reality too. She'd managed to forget those first few years of pain and loneliness, Luffy battered and bleeding, and a score of other injuries and fears that have now embedded themselves into her mind.

And she remembers the _Before,_ which makes it all that much worse, because while it was better and it provides some good memories as balance, it certainly wasn't free of terrible images scored into her brain. (Slipping out of her floatie and sinking deeper and deeper watching the sun through the waves above her as her body goes limp and she stops struggling, her mother crying as she tells her that her grandmother's mind has started to slip, the terrible gut-wrenching realization that her friends didn't deserve the trust she'd placed in them and the vulnerability she'd entrusted them with, watching her family cope with grief and loss made even worse by the knowledge that she'd put them through it _again-_ )

So. Not her first choice of abilities. Her mind was running differently too, clear and focused in a way she didn't think it had ever been. Anything stopping her from _thinking_ was gone and it was bizarre and and honestly very stressful because now she couldn't _stop_ thinking. She wanted to sleep, but she couldn't stop racing through plans and ideas and ways to change the future and analysis of her own mind. It was almost like when her anxiety got away from her Before, but she wasn't stressed about it in the same way, and she hadn't reached the age where the symptoms became bad or noticed any warning signs here. She just...she needed to _think._


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or any of the characters or worldbuilding therein, and make no claims of such. I did this for fun and to show my love for the story. I make no money off of this and do not want to. This work is not approved by, sponsored by or affiliated with the creators of the manga or the show, or any of the translators or official people with rights to said media.

Mira is 16, and she is strong.

Her brothers are 15, 14, and 13, and she doesn't want to leave them, but tomorrow is her birthday and they made a promise. She has a dream now too, one that she is determined to see to completion, and it's probably the only thing that could make her willingly risk being alone again.

And she will be very alone, because she's choosing a path that none of them would ever join her on.

She hears footsteps behind her, and Sabo's familiar figure settles down next to her, looking out at the ocean that she'll soon sail off on. "You should sleep, you know."

"I never sleep, you know that. Sleep is for those who don't have coffee."

"Your devil fruit doesn't protect you from the effects of sleep deprivation."

"Maybe I'm practicing for boot camp."

He sighs, and tosses his arm over her shoulder. "It's not too late to back out, you know. You could take your share of the treasure and book it for the Grand Line before Gramps figures it out, we'd cover for you."

"I know. I'm not going to change my mind though." She leans into his embrace, all too aware that she'd be without it very soon. "If he ever tells you all that you should be good strong Marines like me, you have my full authorization to laugh in his face."

"We don't need permission for that, we'd do it no matter what."

They sit there peacefully together for a few more minutes before Sabo lays back on the dock and dozes off. She sears the memory of his peaceful face into her mind. _This_ is what she will fight to protect.

Five years, she promises herself quietly.

Five years until Marineford, to save as many as she can on this side of the law. Five years to build up trust and reputation enough to avoid suspicion when she visits her brother in chains.

She can do five years.

* * *

Five years later

* * *

Mira paces through the streets of Loguetown, desperate to work off her nervous energy.

She had never planned to end up stationed here, especially not _now,_ but such were the whims of the military. Apparently her Line "wasn't fluent enough" so she needed to stay in East or West. She's pretty sure that's code for "dear God don't make us deal with two of your family in the same ocean," but whatever.

Serving under Captain Smoker has been nice though. He's like, 70% less full of macho pride than her last commanding officer, it's great. And he's nice to kids, which is her first judge of character and weeds out a shocking number of people.

(Apparently she's built up a reputation for being a hardass by-the-book officer and they thought she would offer some balance here, which is fucking hilarious actually. It's not her fault West Blue is full of corrupt dickheads who thought she'd just go along with orders to use her devil fruit abilities to wipe people's memories. That's not being by the book, that's having a fucking conscience).

Anyway, she saw a boat with a suspiciously sheep-like figurehead in the harbour, and she misses her baby brother. Aha! There's the execution stand and _there he is._ She slides up next to the Marine who's about to yell at him and gestures for the man to stand down. "YO, LUFFY!" Not the most professional of greetings, but it gets his attention and he tackles her with a hug, so her goal has been accomplished.

* * *

Smoker is yelling at her about something as they all sail towards the Grand Line, and she's nodding obediently, but frankly she regrets nothing. Yeah okay, it's definitely again the rules to hug wanted criminals, but that's her brother! And maybe she did team up with him, but it was to arrest Buggy and Alvida, and it _worked._ Her arrest record may have a lot more holes than his but they were only the best holes, and they were mostly intentional so _there._ (She does not say this out loud of course, she isn't suicidal, but she's sure thinking it).

Aww, he's so determined to track down Luffy. More the fool him. If he asked, she'd cheerfully inform him of her vast history of failing to stop Luffy from doing anything ever, but he's busy scolding her and she's a _good Marine_ so she won't say anything. Wouldn't do to talk back to a commanding officer!

She can't wait for Alabasta, she hasn't seen Ace in years. Smoker might turn a whole new color after he finds out he's also their brother. Mira spends the rest of the lecture daydreaming about the look on his face if he ever found out about what _Sabo_ has been up to. It almost brings a tear to her eye.

* * *

Her fruit means that she's always thinking. It does _not_ mean that she's always thinking anything useful.

Take now, for example. She's supposed to be patrolling the streets of Alabasta looking for any sign of Luffy or his crew. Logic says that she should be thinking about what she knows about them, and searching for anything out of the ordinary.

The inside of her head sounds pretty much like this: "ace ACE _Ace_ Ace **ACE** it's ACE TIME time for ACE gotta see how my BROTHER is doing make sure he's happy see his _fire_ oh hell yeah that's gonna be so cool he's got fire powers, that's way cooler than mine, I wonder if he's gonna be super polite cuz when I left he was still really angsty _**ACE IS GONNA BE HERE.**_ "

This is why she does not notice when she walks straight into Captain Smoker's chest. Rude, awkward clumsy stuff is supposed to be MCPO Tashigi's job. He isn't even surprised, which is _ruder,_ just sighs and tells her to take a lunch break. They walk into the nearby restaurant and-

" _ **ACE!**_ "

Damn, who knew Smoker could lecture her and fight at the same time? That's some skill- oh _shit_

"Ace, I'm not fireproof you idiot!"

* * *

Is she absolutely thrilled to see two of her brothers in the same place at the same time? Yes.

Is she ecstatic for the unexpected chance to meet Luffy's crew? Yeah.

Is she _ever_ going to forgive Ace for the absolute indignity of using her as a human shield and staging a _kidnapping_ in front of her _boss?_ No. No she is not.

_I_ _t's not her fault nobody was willing to station her in the Grand Line where she could get stronger until just now._

She's slung across his shoulders with a terrible upside down view of his Whitebeard tattoo as he hops up onto the deck of Luffy's ship. He drops her on the deck and tips his hat at the assorted rookie pirates, who immediately freak out about the Whitebeard commander and Marine hostage who've materialized in their business.

They freak out even more when she lashes out a leg and trips him straight onto his face.

The panic reaches epic proportions as their captain hops in and it becomes a brawl.

She maneuvers herself into the top position of what has become a Luffy Sandwich when Ace pulls his _bullshit_ flip move and her back hits the deck again. Five years and he's still using that? She sticks her tongue out at him. " _Fuck_ you."

Luffy bursts into giggles, and Ace cackles at her. "What, did the Marines not teach you how to counter it?"

"Go suck a dick," she grumbles from the bottom of the pile, "Luffy's in the way or I'd have you for sure."

"Dream on, I taught you everything you know." She struggles for a few moments, then flops back in resignation. This is her life now. Clearly the D stands for "dignity-stealers."

Ace pops up and smiles at the onlookers. "I'm Ace, Luffy's brother. Pleasure to meet you all!"

Mira drags her hand out from under Luffy's chin and waves it vaguely in the air. "Mira. Big sister."

The look on their faces may actually rival Smoker's, it's definitely one for the mental snapshot Best-Of list she keeps going.

* * *

Luffy's crew is _delightful._ She's been living on takeout and mess hall food, and before that "whatever we caught, roasted til it won't kill us," and before _that_ literal garbage. She almost wants to marry his cook. Zoro she loves just because he's managed to divert Tashigi's righteous indignation onto somebody else for a change, and Chopper is _absolutely adorable._ 15 years old if she remembers correctly, so she's allowed to say that without it being dismissive due to his species. He's practically a _baby._ She hasn't interacted with Usopp much yet, but if she gets the chance before she's "rescued" she fully intends to challenge him to a sharpshooting contest. She's pretty good, though not outstanding, and she wants to see him snipe _so badly._ If anyone calls her on it she'll tell them it was an evaluation of the enemy's skills. Yep.

She hasn't talked to Nami yet. She isn't...avoiding her, per se. Except that she definitely is, and Luffy has noticed, and he's got his plotting face on, which means that she's going to have to confront her emotions. Stupid little brothers with their _emotional intelligence._ She just...she'd known about Arlong, and she was a Marine. And she'd known about Nezumi. And she'd done _nothing._

(It wasn't that simple of course, she'd been stationed in West Blue for years and she had no way to justify the knowledge she had. Calling corruption on someone of his rank without proof would do nothing, he'd obviously had some skill at covering things up and despite her best efforts she hadn't ever managed to land a posting close enough to claim she'd seen evidence of wrongdoing). That didn't stop her from feeling incredibly guilty about it.

Mira was saved from the inevitable forced confrontation when Marine ships showed up in the distance. "I think that's my ride!"

Ace grinned. "I can take care of those for you, Luffy."

"No!" she smacked his arm. "Some of those are my men, you're not allowed to sink them."

"But they're going to sink Luffy!"

"Not if you..." she sighed. Dignity was _gone._ "Not if you distract them by trading me for a chance for him to get away." She was _never_ going to live this down. Garp was going to drag her away for _remedial training_ and she'd deserve it too.

* * *

Smoker and Tashigi were fuming about the promotions and the orders to take credit for what the Straw Hats had done. "Why are you so calm about all this?" Tashigi hissed at her. "It's a miscarriage of justice!"

I've known this was coming since I was 11, she didn't say. I'm going to be deserting and becoming a pirate by the end of the year so my current rank means absolutely nothing to me, she also didn't say. "I mean, given the number of times I saved him from drowning as a kid, I feel like I can take credit for a certain portion of his current achievements without being a completely awful person." This was, apparently, also the wrong thing to say. You live and you learn.

But you apparently don't live for long because Garp was here and she was _fucked._ "MIRA! You let yourself get captured by _Ace?_ "

Now that was just rude, Ace was a very accomplished pirate nowadays.

No yeah, there it was, Garp was taking her with him. In the back of her mind, she mused that it was actually the best outcome, given that it was guaranteed to get her to Marineford when she needed to be there. The rest of her mind was too busy absolutely panicking at the suffering she was about to encounter. Garp had decided at some point that since all of his other grandchildren had become criminals of various sorts, _she_ needed to be the strongest of them all. That was a failing quest given her normal human body and lack of plot armor, but fuck if he didn't try.

Ah, he was chasing her back to his ship. Fucking great, _holy shit that fist was not very loving._

She mustered up enough breath to holler back to her former commanding officers "STOP LAUGHING, WHAT DID I EVER DO TO YOU?" This was a mistake, she realized as she flew about fifteen feet closer to her destination.

"Here," offered a boy with pink hair, grabbing her hand and pulling her up. "We've got to stick together in situations like this." _Awww_ it was Coby! And there was Helmeppo, landing a little bit ahead of them. So sweet, good Marines who helped their coworkers. Not like her brothers, scoundrels and pirates who lived by the philosophy of "every man for himself when faced with Gramps."

Casually ignoring her own agreement with that principle, she continued to flee.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or any of the characters or worldbuilding therein, and make no claims of such. I did this for fun and to show my love for the story. I make no money off of this and do not want to. This work is not approved by, sponsored by or affiliated with the creators of the manga or the show, or any of the translators or official people with rights to said media.

It was taking every _fiber_ of her self control not to act then and there. She wasn't Luffy, she couldn't pull off a single-handed breakout from Impel Down.

But her little brother was right in front of her and he was _hurting,_ and he thought she wasn't going to do _anything._ Fuck. Fucking shit.

She couldn't have _not_ visited, not only would it have been suspicious but she wasn't going to let him think he was marching to his death and she didn't care enough to say goodbye. If she said anything it would risk blowing the whole deal, but Ace was _hurting_ and Luffy was going to get hurt too, and she had no idea what Sabo was up to but it was definitely dumb and potentially deadly, like always. At least Garp had managed to pull enough strings to let them be as alone as they could get.

"It'll be alright."

"I'm not dumb, Mira."

"Ace, look at me." He did, and his eyes hadn't been that hopeless since she ate her devil fruit. She was angry and sad and scared and determined and all of a sudden

something

_clicked._

How do I tell him that I'm not going to let this happen without letting anybody know, surely he doesn't think I'm going to just stand by? This is why I joined the Marines this is literally the only reason, I'm going to keep him safe-

**What the fuck? What do you mean this is why you joined the Marines?**

Well duh, because I didn't want Ace to die that's been my whole goal, and that was not my voice, that was not my thought, who is that?

**It's Ace, who else would it be. I'm right here.**

Your mouth is _not_ moving.

**Neither is yours.**

This is some devil fruit bullshit, isn't it?

**You'd know better than me, now explain what you mean about me being why you joined the Marines.**

I knew this would happen and i've been planning to ditch them, there's going to be a battle and I will get you out and back to the Whitebeards, and then I'll go be a pirate or whatever if I make it out.

**Mira don't you dare do anything dumb.**

If I die then I die.

**Don't THINK things like that!**

You weren't supposed to _hear_ that. it's not like i'm supposed to be here anyway!

**Of course you are, I'm the one who wasn't supposed to be born.**

That's bullshit and you know it, and-

A hand rested on Mira's shoulder, and she jolted. She felt the connection between them snap as she blinked, and she looked over and saw the jailor who'd guided her down. "Your time is up." As she walked away, she glared back at Ace, and he narrowed his eyes in return. He could think whatever he wanted, he was going to _live._

* * *

She stood at Marineford, surrounded by the people she was about to betray. Coby and Helmeppo were beside her and she hoped that she would lose them in the fuss, that she wouldn't have to look into their eyes as she turned on them. She thought they'd understand, but it would still hurt. Above them, the sun beat down, reflecting off the stone plaza to create a terrible, stifling heat.

Mira did her best not to fidget, and they waited.

She'd devoted five years of her life to this plan with no regrets, and she had no plans to back out now, but the sight of all three admirals and five warlords in one place, as well as Sengoku, was terrifying. It would be better, she thought, when she and Ace weren't the only people here on the other side of things.

Finally, slowly and steadily, the Moby Dick rose from the harbour, the coating falling away as it broke the surface.

_Show time._

The Whitebeards attacked, and the Marines lunged forward to meet them. It was _madness._ Mira had thought she'd been ready. She was wrong. Not even growing up in the Grey Terminal prepared her for this battlefield from hell. It was all she could do to keep herself alive. The Whitebeards were _really strong._ She'd known it in theory, but that meant nothing compared to seeing them fight.

Luffy fell from the sky.

The end was getting closer and she didn't know what to _do._ No amount of planning could cut through the chaos of the actual war, where events shifted and changed in a heartbeat.

And they had changed from what she expected, there was no doubting that.

Ace had to _live_ dammit.

A hand gripped her shoulder, and yanked her back behind a wall. She whirled around, prepared to defend herself, when...Sabo. It was Sabo. Thank _fuck._

He stared seriously at her seriously. "You're with us?"

"Of _course,_ the Marines can get fucked."

"We need to get to the platform."

"I know that, but I don't know _how._ Anybody else on our side is just attacking me, so there isn't much I've been able to do."

He rolled his eyes. "Should've joined _us_ then. Here, take my jacket." She shrugged out of her uniform jacket and hat as quickly as possible, and Sabo looked her over once before nodding firmly. "That'll do. Watch my back?"

She hefted her staff in reply, swinging it over his head to knock over a Marine who'd been coming for his back. "Let's get to Luffy first, he can sling us if we need it."

"Sounds good."

Mira had never been naturally gifted in combat, and her devil fruit was one more inclined for information gathering than offense or defense. But the combination of her childhood and Garp had made her competent, and with Sabo they were more together than the sum of their parts.

They were a whirlwind, cutting across the battlefield towards the ship that had brought Luffy. They reached him just as Smoker and Tashigi did, and Mira swallowed hard as she locked eyes with her former commander.

"So you've chosen to side with pirates and revolutionaries?"

"I've always sided with my family first. This is a farce against justice Smoker, and you know it." He didn't respond with words, instead lunging for the attack. She and Sabo fell in with Luffy naturally, watching each others backs like they always had. All they needed now was Ace.

The rest of the battle blurred together, hope and fear, allies and enemies.

Hancock handed over the keys for Ace's cuffs to Luffy (who handed them to Sabo immediately. They all knew who could be trusted with things like that).

They made an attempt for the platform, then a second, and a third. They ran into Garp, and won for the first time _ever._ (It was a hollow victory).

Ace was free, and they were all together.

Mira had never been more afraid in either of her lives.

They fled, and Mira watched Ace's back frantically.

Ace turned back.

Mira stayed with him.

Sabo grabbed Luffy, and they both turned to see what was happening.

Akainu lunged, and Mira jumped.

* * *

Ace was frozen as his big sister fell to her knees. His ears roared, and he heard Akainu's voice as if it was coming from far away. "Yet another deserter. How disappointing."

Mira slumped to the side, and a trickle of blood dribbled out of her mouth as she looked at him. Straight into his eyes, just like in Impel Down.

**If you don't survive this, I will never forgive you. Protect Sabo and Luffy, I love you.**

He saw the light fade from her eyes, and he saw _so much more._ An entire life she'd never shared, knowledge she'd kept secret and used sparingly. Her whole life dedicated to _him and Luffy and Sabo,_ to keeping them safe and happy and alive.

She didn't deserve to die like this. She deserved a chance to be free and happy, to be a pirate with him and Luffy or a Revolutionary like Sabo or something special and unique and herself. She'd become a Marine for _him_ and now she was dead for _him_ and he wanted to murder Akainu where he stood.

But the knowledge she'd shown him made it clear exactly what would happen if he did, and he refused, _refused_ to let her last wish be in vain.

So he grabbed Sabo, and Sabo grabbed Luffy, and they ran.

* * *

Red-haired Shanks arrived and the war ended (like he knew it would).

Luffy agreed to train with Rayleigh, and told his crew to wait to return (just like she had seen).

Sabo returned to the Revolution, and Ace remained with his crew. He had a responsibility, to protect them from what he knew was coming. He'd do his best to keep them together, strong against the threats that would pick them off. Pops would have wanted them safe.

There were no headlines, for her death. Not like there would have been for his. To her comrades she'd died a traitor, to the pirates she was a nobody.

They buried her next to his mother. Two women who had died for him. _Never again,_ he swore quietly. Never again.

There was a little girl waiting for him, in Wano. She would _live._


End file.
